Written byMargaret Wild Illustrated by Ron BrooksPublished by Allen & Unwin, 2013ISBN: 1741147549 (ISBN13: 9781741147544).Book was borrowed from the Jurong West Public Library. Book photos taken by me.

While I am familiar with the gritty collaboration between Margaret Wild and Ron Brooks’ in their picturebooks Fox(see my review here) and the heart-wrenching Old Pig(see my review here) – I think this is the first light-hearted book that I read from the both of them.

I love the bright colours here, and how the child’s voice seems like a refrain always, in the beginning with just three words: My daddy said – followed by the father’s recollection of how the world was introduced to this young child – from the night creatures…

… to the ancient trees, to the winged creatures in the skies, to bushes “bright with berries” – the image below made my mouth water:

I like the father’s quiet introduction of the neighbourhood to his child – how everything seems to be imbued with a new understanding and joy, as seen through the newborn’s eyes. I especially loved the last few lines on the last page – just the comforting sense of the entire world in an embrace. It is a lovely, quiet book.

Written by Isabel Minhós Martins Illustrated byMadalena MatosoPublished by Tate, 2011 (First Published in 2007).ISBN: 1854379585 (ISBN13: 9781854379580). Literary Award: Prémio Nacional de Ilustração for Menção Especial do Júri (2007). Book was borrowed from the Jurong West Public Library. Book photos taken by me.

Unlike the first picturebook, this one is written using the child’s voice on how things are very different compared to “the darkness of my mother’s tummy.”

It begins with all the things that the child has not seen yet, the things that the child has never done before.

Then it gradually moves towards that sense of awe and amazement with the world, the soaking in of all things brand new and beautiful, and that joy of discovery:

I think that this will be a good book to pair with the first one – as this introduces longer text, with fairly unusual art, but all in bold primary colours – perfect for infants.

Written byDouglas Wood Art by K. Wendy PoppPublished bySimon Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2010ISBN:0689861729 (ISBN13: 9780689861727). Book was borrowed from the Jurong West Public Library. Book photos taken by me.

One can even say that there is an existential quality to this picturebook – with the repeated iterations of where does the sunrise begin followed by a few ruminations on the possible answer to this question:

Some say it begins in the treetop,

where the birds notice the first soft light

and begin to sing,

each in their own way,

with their own melody,

waking the sleepy world around them,

while the first breeze shivers the smallest leaves.

And then the reader turns the page with the seeming-definite response that, alas, it is not where the sunrise begins. While I absolutely adore the life-like painting quality of the images, I am not too certain how children would respond to it.

But then again, that is the entire idea behind exposing them to a variety of reading materials – for them to see those variations in visual expressions. The image below is one of my absolute favourites:

And so where the sunrise actually begins, I shall leave for you to discover. These are all perfect picturebooks to give to parents who are welcoming a new child in their lives.

Myra is a Teacher Educator and a registered clinical psychologist based in Singapore. She has edited five books on rediscovering children’s literature in Asia (with a focus on the Philippines, Malaysia, India, China, Japan) as part of the proceedings for the Asian Festival of Children’s Content where she serves as the Chair of the Programme Committee for the Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference. While she is an academic by day, she is a closet poet and a book hunter at heart. When she is not reading or writing about books or planning her next reads or meeting up with her book club friends, she is smashing that shuttlecock to smithereens because Badminton Is Life.

I agree that these are gorgeous! As I watch my two eight month old grandchildren grow I am in awe of how much they take in around them. The realization that they have to recreate the world inside their minds is almost overwhelming!

All three books you’ve featured in this post look fantastic. My niece loves to hear stories about the day she was born, so I bet she would love all of these books. I’ll have to add them to my list of books to buy for her.

Your blog is so gorgeous, I just had to mention that. And I really love the way you bring picture books to the forefront and make us really consider the deeper meanings. Before I just thought of them as colourful books, with fun textures or nonsense words meant to capture a child’s attention for a short period, but they all have deeper meanings/ purposes especially the ones you introduce us to.